Conventional coring tools used to obtain core samples from a borehole include a tubular housing attached at one end to a special bit often referred to as a core bit, and at the other end to a drill string extending through the borehole to the surface. The tubular housing is usually referred to as an outer barrel or core barrel. The outer barrel contains an inner barrel or inner tube with a space between the outer surface of the inner barrel and the inner surface of the outer barrel. During a coring operation, the core bit drills into a formation and extracts a core sample of that formation. The core sample enters and fills the inner barrel, which is then subsequently returned to the surface.